Tampere European Council 1999: Conclusions

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How they announced that, at the Tampere Heads of Government Meeting in 1999, they agreed to the establishment of agencies of the European Union to administer and co-ordinate rules in respect of (a) police training and practices; (b) fishery protection; (c) human rights; and (d) aviation and railway operations; what reports have been published by these agencies; and whether there have been any parliamentary debates on those reports.

Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean: My right honourable friend the then Lord Privy Seal (Baroness Jay of Paddington) announced the decision to set up a European Police College during her Statement to the House on the Tampere European Council on 19 October 1999 (Official Report, cols. 946–948). Other agencies were not covered in the Council's conclusions. A comprehensive list of the Council's conclusions were placed in the Library of the House.
	(a) The European Police Training College (CEPOL) was established by Council decision (2001820/JHA) in December 2000 to improve police co-operation, to identify and disseminate good practice, and to develop and deliver training to senior police officers involved in the fight against international and cross-border crime. CEPOL has produced annual progress reports for each of the years 2001, 2002 and 2003, which have been sent to the European Council. The 2002 annual report marking the first complete year of operation was sent to the European Scrutiny Committee. A three-year report was sent to the European Council in December 2003. The 2004 report will be published early next year and will be sent to the European Scrutiny Committee.
	(b) The Fisheries Protection Agency has not yet been established.
	(c) The Tampere 1999 conclusions cover the work of the body set up to draft the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. This work is now complete so the body is no longer in existence. The conclusions also refer to the EU Monitoring Centre for Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC), in operation since 1998. A Commission communication of 25 October 2004 has asked for views on the extension of the EUMC to establish a human rights agency.
	(d) A proposal for a regulation establishing a European Railway Agency (COM(2002)23 Final) was published in January 2002. It was adopted on 29 April 2004 as Regulation (EC) No 881/2004. The first annual report of the agency is not due to be published before 30 April 2005. A proposal for a regulation establishing a European Aviation Safety Agency—(COM(2000) 595 Final) was published in the official journal in May 2001. It was adopted on 15 July 2002 as Regulation (EC) No. 1592/2002. The regulation requires the management board to adopt before 31 March each year a general report for the agency for the previous year and forward it to the European Parliament, Council, the Commission and member states. The report for 2003 was forwarded to the European Parliament, Council, Commission and member states in July 2004 and is available on the agency's website www.easa.eu.int/home/index.html.

European Union Presidency 2005

Lord Harrison: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What theme they have developed for the 2005 European Union presidency; whether that will be illustrated on a special United Kingdom presidency tie and scarf; if so, how; and whether they will follow up their 1997 theme which highlighted children in the European Union.

Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean: The Government have been working on the identity for the UK presidency of the European Union with the Design Council. We expect to make the identity public in early 2005. As is customary, we will commission UK presidency ties and scarves which will have a representation/version of the identity on them. Children have not, this time, been involved in the preparation of the identity, although the Government will pursue the theme of youth during the presidency at a youth conference.

Iraq and the Democratic Republic of Congo: Elections

The Lord Bishop of Winchester: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What financial assistance they are providing towards next year's elections in (a) Iraq; and (b) the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean: The Government have contributed 10 million dollars and provided two advisers to assist the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq (IECI) in its preparations for the forthcoming elections. In addition, the Department for International Development (DfID) has established a £5 million political participation fund to support activities that will increase opportunities for political representation and participation by all Iraqi citizens, particularly women.
	The UK, through DfID, is considering an initial contribution of £5 million to the elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo through the multi-donor framework managed by the United Nations Development Programme. It is planning possible further support through other agencies on civic education and to help enhance the capacity of the Congolese public, including women, to participate fully in the electoral process.

China: Human Rights

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What representations they and the European Union respectively have made to the Government of the People's Republic of China on the case of Tenzin Deleg Rinpoche.

Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean: We and our European Union (EU) partners have raised in a series of démarches with the Chinese authorities our serious concerns about the way in which the trial of Tenzin Deleg Rinpoche was conducted and the death sentence. The most recent EU démarche took place on 25 November 2004. The Dutch presidency, on behalf of the EU, wrote to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the case on 22 December 2004. The case was also included on our list of individual cases of concern at the UK-China human rights dialogue round which took place on 22 November in Beijing. My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Bill Rammell) raised this case with Assistant Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui in December 2003.

Sudan: Darfur

Lord Alton of Liverpool: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What is the current position regarding the suspension of African Union monitoring flights in Darfur, Sudan, following an attack on one of its helicopters.

Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean: Contrary to media reports, the African Union (AU) did not suspend activities in Darfur following an attack on one of its helicopters on 19 December. There were no casualties in the attack and the AU immediately began an investigation into the incident. The AU continues to conduct its duties in Darfur as normal.
	We strongly condemn any attacks on peace observers and urge the parties to abide by the humanitarian and security protocols they signed in Abuja on 9 November.

Sudan: Darfur

Lord Alton of Liverpool: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What is the current position regarding the threat made by European Union and African Union ambassadors to abandon the Abuja peace talks on Darfur, Sudan.

Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean: During the last Abuja round (10–21 December) the African Union mediation, with the support of the international observers, made clear that talks could not progress to political issues while military offensives continued. The round closed with an agreement by both sides to cease military activity and withdraw to positions to be agreed with the African Union.
	The next round of talks is due to commence in the coming weeks.

Police Authorities: Geographical Areas

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Which geographical areas are served by each United Kingdom police authority; and how many people there are in each of those areas.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: Schedule 1 to the Police Act 1996 sets out the extent of each police force area for each police authority in England and Wales. The table below sets out the most recent population figures for each police force area taken from the mid-year estimates for 2003 from the Office of National Statistics.
	
		
			 Force ONS mid-year population estimate 2003 
			 Avon and Somerset 1,508,171 
			 Bedfordshire 573,765 
			 Cambridgeshire 729,812 
			 Cheshire 990,323 
			 City of London 8,043 
			 Cleveland 554,546 
			 Cumbria 489,829 
			 Derbyshire 976,212 
			 Devon and Cornwall 1,601,215 
			 Dorset 699,428 
			 Durham 592,369 
			 Dyfed Powys 498,695 
			 Essex 1,629,647 
			 Gloucester 568,452 
			 Greater Manchester 2,530,956 
			 Gwent 555,300 
			 Hampshire 1,797,070 
			 Hertfordshire 1,040,925 
			 Humberside 881,652 
			 Kent 1,599,912 
			 Lancashire 1,429,212 
			 Leicestershire 938,811 
			 Lincolnshire 665,270 
			 Merseyside 1,364,212 
			 Metropolitan Police 7,379,825 
			 Norfolk 810,695 
			 North Wales 670,808 
			 North Yorkshire 759,183 
			 Northamptonshire 642,708 
			 Northumbria 1,392,448 
			 Nottinghamshire 1,029,293 
			 South Wales 1,213,188 
			 South Yorkshire 1,272,609 
			 Staffordshire 1,048,973 
			 Suffolk 678,074 
			 Surrey 1,064,575 
			 Sussex 1,506,187 
			 Thames Valley 2,112, 536 
			 Warwickshire 519,301 
			 West Mercia 1,173,231 
			 West Midlands 2,578,387 
			 West Yorkshire 2,095,862 
			 Wiltshire 622,021

Extradition Act 2003

Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether any proposals to resubmit or continue (under the Extradition Act 2003) a request for extradition, initially received before 31 December 2003, have been made to the United Kingdom by any country since that date; and, if so, by which countries.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: Two requests previously made under the Extradition Act 1989 have been withdrawn and resubmitted under the Extradition Act 2003. One request, for two people, came from the USA and the other request, for one person, came from the Czech Republic. The requesting states took this action on their own initiative and did not submit proposals to the UK before doing so.

Underage Drinking

Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether, in light of the findings of the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Drugs on the increased consumption of alcohol by teenage girls, any additional measures will be taken to reverse this trend; and whether they will now reconsider their decision not to use price as a lever to reduce overall consumption of alcohol.

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: The Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England (published on 15 March 2004) contains several recommendations to tackle underage drinking, through education and communication, and greater and more effective use of existing powers. The Home Office and the Department of Health are working closely in partnership with the police and the alcohol industry to take this work forward. The Government currently have no plans to use price as a lever to reduce overall consumption of alcohol. The strategy sets out how we aim to tackle the problem of alcohol misuse.
	During the summer, the Alcohol Misuse Enforcement Campaign focused attention on tackling sales to under 18 year-olds and underage drinkers. The campaign has continued during the Christmas season (17 December to 3 January). On 1 November new fixed penalty notices were introduced for the selling, delivery, and purchase of alcohol for children and individuals under 18. The penalty notices also make it illegal for persons under 18 to drink alcohol in a bar. Under the Licensing Act 2003 penalties for selling alcohol to children are also being increased from a maximum of £1,000 to £5,000. These increases are expected to come into effect in November 2005 at the end of the Act's transitional period.

Royal Air Force Centrifuge

Lord Tebbit: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Bach on 10 January (WA 7) concerning legal proceedings between the Ministry of Defence and the Environmental Tectonics Corporation, what is the nature of the dispute and the contract to which it relates.

Lord Bach: The current legal proceedings between the parties concerns the value and scope of a claim from ETC for additional work on a contract (Contract No. AES IA1279) that supplied integrated avionics maintenance trainers (IAMT) to the Royal Air Force in 2002. Legal proceedings are now held in abeyance pending a negotiated resolution of the dispute.

Defence Ministers Meeting, Paris, December 2004

Lord Astor of Hever: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they were represented at the meeting of Defence Ministers held in Paris on 21 December 2004 to discuss security co-operation in the Mediterranean; and, if so, by whom.

Lord Bach: No. The meeting in question was of "5 + 5" dialogue members, an informal grouping of 10 countries in the western Mediterranean: the five countries of the Arab Maghreb Union (Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia) and five EU countries (France, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Spain).

Migration: Projected Levels

Lord Lamont of Lerwick: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What projected levels of net migration have been assumed in the current and previous set of household projections in England.

Lord Rooker: Household projections use projected levels of net migration from the Government Actuary's Department (GAD).
	The 1996 based household projections were linked to the GAD 1996 based population projections. The latter included a long-term net migration assumption of +66,000 people per annum in England.
	The 2002 based interim household projections were linked to the GAD 2002 based population projections. The latter included long-term net migration assumption of 124,000 per annum for England. This was offset by a downward adjustment of 25,000 per annum that the Office for National Statistics (ONS) termed "unattributable change". This gave a "net migration and other changes" estimate of 99,000 per annum. The "unattributable change" was ONS' estimated correction for difficulties in estimating emigration accurately and accounting for people spending part of their time in the UK and part abroad. This was revealed by the 2001 Census. ONS has since reviewed this adjustment and concluded that it is now not required.

Migration: Projected Levels

Lord Lamont of Lerwick: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What the total net migration in England was for each year from 1950 to 2003.

Lord Rooker: The Office for National Statistics has made the estimates of net international migration to England shown in the attached table. These estimates are available from 1964 through to 2002, as they are based on a survey that started in 1964.
	
		Thousands
		
			 Year England Year England 
			 1964 –32.6 1984 +37.0 
			 1965 –49.6 1985 +61.8 
			 1966 –48.5 1986 +41.9 
			 1967 –52.0 1987 +11.2 
			 1968 –34.4 1988 –6.8 
			 1969 –68.7 1989 +42.1 
			 1970 –45.7 1990 +47.2 
			 1971 –26.0 1991 +48.8 
			 1972 +4.8 1992 +5.9 
			 1973 –35.1 1993 +6.0 
			 1974 –65.4 1994 +74.6 
			 1975 –26.9 1995 +79.0 
			 1976 –5.6 1996 +60.9 
			 1977 –34.8 1997 +59.9 
			 1978 +5.2 1998 +144.5 
			 1979 +11.6 1999 +153.9 
			 1980 –31.1 2000 +F 
			 1981 –58.0 2001 +172.4 
			 1982 –35.1 2002 +160.5 
			 1983 +28.5   
		
	
	In 1998 the net international migration figures rose to 144,500 people from 59,900 people in the previous year. This increase was a result of more people entering England as well as fewer English citizens leaving. In 1998 the inflow of people rose from 298,700 in 1997 up to 361,200. The outflow fell from 238,800 in 1997 to 216,700 in 1998. The highest increase in net inflow was from migrants coming from the Old Commonwealth, particularly from Australia and South Africa.

House Fires

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What were the causes of house fires over the period 2000–03, stating the number of deaths and injuries arising from each cause.

Lord Rooker: Figures for incidents attended by local authority fire and rescue services in the UK are tabled below.
	
		Fires and related casualties 1  in dwellings by cause, UK, 2000–2003
		
			   Deliberate Fires  Accidental Fires 
			 Year Total Suicide/ attempts Other deliberate Faulty fuel supplies Faulty appliances and leads Misuse of equipment or appliances Chip or fat pan fires Playing with fire Careless handling of fire or hot substances Person too close/fell on fire Placing articles too close to heat Other accidental Unspecified 
			 2000  
			 Fires 70,899 79 14,136 2,104 7,405 20,107 10,991 775 4,822 77 4,788 4,937 679 
			 Fatal casualties 455 9 49 7 16 21 33 8 147 16 48 50 51 
			 Non-fatal casualties 9,076 56 1,356 129 745 1,636 2,225 220 1,194 40 783 591 101 
			 2001  
			 Fires 69,048 55 14,727 2,098 7,457 18,828 9,458 759 5,189 51 4,942 4,856 627 
			 Fatal casualties 483 8 47 7 30 24 34 10 147 16 57 48 55 
			 Non-fatal casualties 8,797 37 1,367 145 645 1,525 2,093 226 1,144 32 870 599 114 
			 2002 2   
			 Fires 62,959 54 13,652 1,971 7,167 16,791 8,619 694 4,447 60 4,838 4,150 516 
			 Fatal casualties 410 15 55 3 22 17 32 3 135 16 35 27 50 
			 Non-fatal casualties 8,152 38 1,362 144 673 1,406 1,905 210 1,101 44 746 418 105 
			 2003(2)  
			 Fires 62,531 45 13,453 1,878 6,852 16,851 8,235 573 4,900 40 4,446 4,649 610 
			 Fatal casualties 438 6 47 0 18 27 39 6 122 8 34 45 86 
			 Non-fatal casualties 7,524 35 1,258 113 570 1,309 1,681 225 1,015 36 639 512 131 
		
	
	1 Non-fatal casualties exclude precautionary check-ups
	2 Excludes incidents in strike periods; November 2002 (10 days) and January, February 2003 (5 days)
	=provisional

School Sport Partnerships:Funding

Lord Moynihan: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	How much funding was made available for school sport partnerships from the physical education, school sport and club links budget head for the two years since 2003–04; and what is the projected budget for each year until 2007–08.

Lord Filkin: Actual and projected funding for school sport partnerships from the physical education, school sport and club links budget head for the years in question is as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2003–04 42,139,280 
			 2004–05 67,237,857 
			 2005–06 96,470,279 
			 2006–07 117,000,000 
			 2007–08 117,000,000 
		
	
	Funding for individual school sport partnerships is calculated on a formulaic basis, dependent upon the number of schools in each partnership.

Learning and Skills Council:Works of Art

Lord Hanningfield: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What, if any, works of art have been bought or commissioned by the Learning and Skills Council, including its regional offices, in the past two years.

Lord Filkin: No works of art have been bought or commissioned by the Learning and Skills Council in the past two years.

Exmoor: Red Deer

Baroness Mallalieu: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	What steps are proposed to safeguard the survival of the red deer herds of Exmoor following the implementation of the Hunting Act 2004.

Lord Whitty: Defra has promoted the deer initiative which is advertising to fill the new post of deer liaison officer for the South West. The National Park Authority is also considering the issue of maintaining a sustainable red deer herd on Exmoor.
	Defra recently announced its national strategy for achieving the sustainable management of wild deer in England, which is as much about safeguarding populations of native deer as it is about reducing numbers where they are causing problems. Under this national framework the responsibility for local deer management rests with local deer managers. The deer initiative will offer advice where needed and encourages the use of deer management groups to bring deer managers together to provide a cohesive local approach to ensure sustainable populations of native deer are maintained.

Transport Direct

Lord Berkeley: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Davies of Oldham on 16 September 2004 (WA 207), why the "£33.7 million projected total cost of the Transport Direct programme from its inception in April 2002 until the end of the current financial year" differs from the "spend to date of £16.7 million" quoted in the Department for Transport's press release of 1 December 2004; and how they intend to spend the balance of £17 million before the 5 April.

Lord Davies of Oldham: The "spend to date" figure in the press release should have read "spend to March 2004", as it did not include the figures for the 2004–05 financial year. The budget for the 2004–05 financial year is £17 million, and much of this has already been spent, although the forecast spend by year end has been reduced to £15 million.